12. Found Her

|| Lilac’s POV || The days blurred together, each one marked by the arrival of another extravagant gift from Kael. A diamond necklace that sparkled like starlight, a designer handbag that cost more than most people’s monthly salaries, a bouquet of rare orchids that smelled like a summer garden, each one delivered with a note penned in Kael’s elegant handwriting. “For my future Luna,” the notes read, each one signed with a flourish. In my past life, these gestures would have melted my heart, made me believe in his love, his devotion. But now, they only filled me with a cold, simmering anger.  I stood in my room, staring at the latest gift, a velvet box containing a pair of emerald earrings that matched my eyes. My reflection in the mirror caught my attention, and I couldn’t help but notice how different I looked. The softness in my eyes was gone, replaced by a hardness that hadn’t been there before. The girl who had once believed in fairy tales was gone, replaced by a woman who knew the